Wear it like a belt while attaching it to the laptop (If you don't mind looking a bit ridiculous).
Although I'd highly recommend putting some cloth around it, or fitting it through the belt loops of jeans/trousers to soften the inevitable 'yank' when it comes.
I will preface this by saying that i never built anything related to this, nor am i visually-impaired so take whatever i say with a grain of salt. However i have been interested in the subject on & off for quite sometime following some hype around Braille tablets a decade ago.
(which sadly never materialized)
> 30 units of display thingy
They are usually called "Braille Cells" (sometimes called "piezoelectric braille cell") and have 8 dots (instead of the usual 6 for books) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_Braille_Code]
These cells are comprised of 8 levers. The "Dot" rises when a voltage is applied to a crystal that expands due to the piezo effect/bimorph.
Here is a video of someone taking apart a couple of them and showing the insides, driver etc.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmwFsTLkpa8 (it's not an in-depth look but just to get an idea)
They also sell "Braille Lines" which are combos : cells + backpanel/driver : https://metec-ag.de/en/produkte-braille-zeilen.php
(If you find a way to buy them i would greatly appreciate you sharing it)
Finally you would need a brain for all this which could be the raspi directly or you might opt for using the raspberry-pi (for the ebook manipulation, character-to-dot conversion etc.. unless you decide to pre-format the files) in conjunction with an arduino (for the signal transfer/propagation.. you know sending the dot configuration)
A nice video from "Applied Science" about a one Cell driver DIY project (He is i believe, using the P16 cell from metec) might help you decide whether to buy a backplane-driver or make your own [also the idea of putting a push-button underneath the braille-cell might be interesting to you for a selection mechanism maybe?] : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss-Fux86doQ
A video showing Metic P20 cells + backpanel + DC step-up converter driven by an Arduino Uno (it has no value other than to hopefully encourage you to pursue this project :D ) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zqth08wQBs
Designing Braille System using P20 Braille Cells Presentation (a student project i think with a good overview of the minimum necessary parts and their functions you can skip to the 5min mark to avoid the usual academia-fluff) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAYB0g6LhVM
Hey thank you for this discovery.
After every arch-install i think to myself i should probably automate this, and i only go as far as logging all the commands typed (mostly doing '# history > log.sh' and adding a few comments) and said file is is forgotten or i am trying something different for the next install (like desperately trying to make a CB3-131 Chromebook work nicely)
>There's a lot of room for someone to create good tutorials and material for ramping up and out of Arduino. Would have helped me a lot, at least.
Good news they do exist (at least if i understood your statement correctly),
You just need to search with the keywords "AVR", "atmega328", or whichever version you intend to use instead of "Arduino".
I attempted to make a simple PLC this summer and these resources were a great help :
Although the course was centered around an atmega16 or something? i really don't recall sorry but the knowledge i gained was invaluable and easily transferable to a 328p.
If watching videos is compatible with your learning style then i highly recommend this whole series on Youtube about Op-Amps, the channel is called RSD-Academy.
This dude explained-it so well that i was astonished as to why i didn't 'get' before.
There is also Dave Jones' op-amp tutorial at EEVBlog (if you like Aussie accents and a bit more detailed/technical explanation yet still targeted at beginners) <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FYHt5XviKc>
Although I'd highly recommend putting some cloth around it, or fitting it through the belt loops of jeans/trousers to soften the inevitable 'yank' when it comes.